Sheffield United Boss on “Lethargic and Leggy” Performance Against Bristol City
A 1-1 draw under the lights at Bramall Lane was the result of Sheffield United’s inability to withstand a late assault from play-off hopefuls Bristol City. Although Tyrese Campbell’s clinical goal put the Blades ahead, Mark Sykes’ dramatic equaliser in the closing seconds held them back. With just one loss in their previous nine league games, Bristol City looked confident in possession and controlled extended stretches of play, but United remained a constant threat on the counter, with Harrison Burrows coming closest early on, his low-driven effort forcing a wise save from Max O’Leary.The best opportunity of the first half fell to Jesurun Rak-Sakyi, who found himself just three yards from goal. However, under pressure from George Tanner’s last-ditch challenge, his touch let him down, and the chance went begging.
At the other end, the Robins had a golden opportunity to break the deadlock. Tanner’s pinpoint cross found Sinclair Armstrong unmarked at the back post, but Michael Cooper showed sharp reflexes and clawed the header off the line to keep the game level at halftime.
The breakthrough finally arrived in the 61st minute, and it was a moment of real quality from in-form striker Tyrese Campbell. Latching onto a precise through-ball from Rhian Brewster, Campbell spun away from his marker and coolly slotted the ball into the bottom corner beyond O’Leary’s reach. The goal sent the Bramall Lane faithful into celebration, as the Blades momentarily moved three points clear at the top of the table.
With the lead secured, Chris Wilder made defensive changes to solidify his team’s position. Campbell, who had picked up a knock, was replaced by Kieffer Moore, while Anel Ahmedhodzic and Sam McCallum were introduced to shore up the defence.
But Bristol City refused to give up, pushing forward in search of an equaliser.
With the clock hitting 90 minutes, the visitors finally found their reward. A slick attacking move saw the ball fall to Mark Sykes down the right channel of the box, who made no mistake, firing past Cooper to send the travelling Robins fans into raptures.
Chris Wilder’s Honest Assessment of Poor Sheffield United Performance in Bristol City Draw
“Really just sluggish and lethargic with no energy,” he remarked. Our two midfield players sat too deep, and they had a stretch at the top of the pitch, which gave us issues. We never touched their midfield players; they were in the box and we didn’t enter it.
He added: “We changed a couple of things around at half time; we had to be a little bit more brave and get up the pitch. We were more bothered about a one ball over the top for Armstrong, who has got pace and power, but we have to get after their midfield players because their midfield players were better than our two midfield players in the first half and they dominated the game. But we still had the best chances, we had three or four really good chances so the control of the game was there’s but the best chances were ours.”
“We got ourselves in front and then we were okay but not good enough to go and go two or three even though we had little opportunities, transition counter attacks and we should’ve been better,” he stated. “They were always in the game: if I was their manager I would’ve been disappointed to walk away with no points from a really good performance.”
Wilder admitted his team were poor across the board, while Bristol City were very good: “If I’m honest, performance-wise, there were more fives and sixes than sevens and eights. If you were looking at their team, there were more sevens and eights than fives and sixes.
“The bit at the end [with the penalty appeal and the handbags] is nonsense. I don’t think there was anything in any of those decisions from a penalty point of view.”
Wilder Heaps Praise on Tyrese Campbell as Injury Concerns Grow Ahead of Steel City Derby
Despite his frustration at the performance, Wilder was full of praise for Campbell’s contribution.
“We were all off it, but I thought [Campbell] was good. He was lively all evening, and it’s a great goal.”
Vinicius Souza was not close to starting against Bristol City, according to Wilder, as the Blades awaited the findings of his scan.
Tyrese Campbell’s injury presents United with yet another challenge before the Steel City match. “It’s just a contact injury, foot on foot, I think it was,” the United manager told The Star. He won’t have any issues.
Sheffield United had an excellent opportunity to close the gap on Burnley, who are currently in third place, but Leeds United can take advantage of both clubs missing points at home on Wednesday when they visit Millwall, who are vying for a spot in the playoffs.
Read more news on https://sportupdates.co.uk/
Leave a Reply